Finn confident his team can find its way, once it finds its way outside

Farmington High pitcher Connor Mohr is pictured during a 6-0 loss to West Bloomfield April 15. (Photo by Donna Agusti)

Farmington High pitcher Connor Mohr is pictured during a 6-0 loss to West Bloomfield April 15. (Photo by Donna Agusti)

As the weather continued its indiscriminate path of frustration on spring sports teams last week, Farmington High baseball coach Pete Finn searched for answers as to how to shake out of a rut.

Getting outside more consistently would certainly help.

“This is the worst spring I’ve ever been a part of,” Finn said with a forced laugh. “But the thing is, I think it affects different teams different ways. If you’re a team on a roll, for example, you hate to stop playing and have that momentum stop. But if you’re a team like us, it’s such a mental grind we’re trying to shake out of. It’s tough to do that in the gym.”

The Falcons were 0-5 at press time, having lost in a variety of ways.

“We’ve played some 13-12 games and lost another 6-0,” Finn explained. “But it’s a long season, and the talent is here to turn things around.”

With seven seniors on the roster, so too is the experience.

Farmington ended last year 16-20 overall but was playing its best baseball as the regular season wound down.

After not sweeping a single doubleheader most of the year, the Falcons took three in one week leading up to the district round last year. A 5-4 loss to North Farmington ended 2012, but it appeared to start some decent momentum on a relatively veteran group that came back this spring.

“We’ve just been pressing a bit,” Finn said. “The kids are pressing, and it’s showed.”

He said he’s tried to change things up at practice, indoors and out, trying to keep things fresh.

“Like I said, it’s a mental thing right now,” Finn added. “The talent is here to be a good team. We just have to grind through it until we get outside and play games the way we expected. … The defense is coming along, and I know the offense will get there. We’re still figuring out our rotation, but it’s tough to do a lot of that in the gym.”

He’s certainly not throwing in the towel.

“We’ve played some good games and done a lot of things well,” Fine explained. “We’re going to keep it fun, work on the things we can, and then it’s on them. They have to have their eye on the prize, and find that focus. When we do that, and when we start playing more consistently, we’re a team that can put it all together.”